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Commercial & Events Team share the latest industry trends
At Belfast Met, the Commercial and Events Team recognise that in these uncertain times organisations are not in a position to consider a venue for their next event, next conference, exhibition or awards ceremony, meeting or training day in the company calendar.
We have our clients at the forefront of our minds at this time, and wanted to share some current trends in the events and meetings industry.
Eventsforce conducted a research study in April 2020 entitled ‘The Impact of Coronavirus on Meetings & Events’, based on the views of over 550 US & UK based event professionals, representing government and educational institutions, event management agencies, PCOs, corporates and associations.
The Impact on Meetings and Events
One of the main objectives of the study was to investigate the proportion of events that have been cancelled or postponed as a result of the outbreak, as well as when events are being rescheduled to. The findings show that :
• 45% of organisers have postponed;
• 27% have cancelled and another;
• 25% are searching for solutions to move their events online
Most of the events that have been postponed have been rescheduled to the second half of the year, with 36% in the autumn and 11% in winter this year. Another 25% have moved their events to 2021, while 23% are still trying to decide.
“The results show that the Coronavirus outbreak has had a shocking impact on our industry with the cancellation of many major events this quarter. More than 50% have also postponed their events to later in the year – while others like Facebook and Microsoft won’t be hosting any large physical events until summer 2021,” said George Sirius, CEO of Eventsforce.
The findings show that deciding whether to cancel, reschedule or go digital is one of the toughest challenges organisers currently face in the job. Other challenges include difficulties in planning things given the fluidity of the current situation (66%), changing contract terms with suppliers, sponsors and exhibitors (34%), dealing with refunds and cash flow issues (28%) and making sure delegate communications and expectations are managed in the right way (25%). Nearly 30% are also having to deal with job cuts and long-term financial loss.
The Impact on Event Planners
The study also found that almost 70% of organisers now have a lot more time on their hands as a result of the ongoing situation. Many are focusing on education and personal development (54%), while others are making improvements to their event planning processes (50%) and marketing activities (51%). Technology is another key area with 37% of organisers taking steps to evaluate their event tech and another 36% making improvements to the way they collect, manage and secure their event data.
The Commercial and Events Team at Belfast Met are here to support you with your events enquiries in any way we can, so please get in contact on email meet@belfastmet.ac.uk